Senator Christopher "Bong" Go has co-authored a Senate bill granting Filipino citizenship to Justin Brownlee in an effort to include him as a naturalized player for the Philippine men's basketball team or Gilas Pilipinas.
Go co-authored the bill which was principally authored by Senator Ronald Dela Rosa.
“Si Brownlee pusong pinoy (a Filipino at heart). Never say die attitude. Kaya mahal sya ng Filipino fans (That's why the Filipino fans love him),” Go said.
“Habang tumatagal, deserving siya manaturalize kasi nakablend na siya sa basketball team natin (As time goes on, he deserves to be naturalized because he has blended into our basketball team)," he said.
"Importante nakaka blend ka sa teammates mo para manalo. I am sure napamahal na siya sa mga Pilipino, and ang mga Pilipino ay napamahal na din sa kanya (It's important that you can blend with your teammates to win. I am sure he has fallen in love with the Filipinos, and the Filipinos have also fallen in love with him)," he added.
Go said Brownlee's eligibility to play for Gilas Pilipinas will be facilitated by Senate Bill No. 1336, which will grant him Filipino citizenship.
Brownlee has achieved notable success in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) taking home a total of five PBA championships, including four against Meralco.
Brownlee has been able to shrug off an injury he sustained while playing for Al Shaijah in the United Arab Emirates last year, and coincidentally, he has put up implausible statistics while playing in the PBA Governors' Cup.
He has also been a resident import of Ginebra ever since he stepped foot in the country in 2016.
With his astounding performance, Brownlee is expected to give reinforcement to Gilas Pilipinas for the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
"Sa kanyang paglalaro ng higit limang taon sa bansa, alam ko rin pong may pusong Pinoy na si Justin Brownlee. Ito po ay magsisilbing motivation din sa kanya upang lumaban para sa Pilipinas sa susunod na World Cup na gaganapin mismo dito sa atin (As he played for more than five years in the country, I also know that Justin Brownlee has a Filipino heart. This will also serve as motivation for him to fight for the Philippines in the next World Cup that will be held here)," said Go.
“Bukod sa basketball, ipinakita rin ni Brownlee ang kanyang pagmamahal sa mga Pilipino at sa bansa sa kanyang dedikasyon sa laro at sinseridad na dumaan sa proseso para maging ganap na Filipino citizen (Aside from basketball, Brownlee also showed his love for Filipinos and the country with his dedication to the game and sincerity that went through the process to become a full Filipino citizen," Go shared.